Showing posts with label The Muppets. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The Muppets. Show all posts

Friday, December 18, 2015

My Favorite Christmas Movies!

    Hey everyone!  I'm just going to stop apologizing for missing posts because it seems like I do this every week now...  Thursday was a bit hectic for me because I had to run a ton of errands and then work late, so I really just wanted to sleep when I got home.  That being said, this is a fun, (pointless), post about Christmas, so it's not like you were missing out on anything.  Tomorrow is also my birthday, so I'm looking forward to taking advantage of the weekend off.  I plan on watching a lot of Christmas movies, since I haven't watched any yet this season because I've been so busy.  Here are my go-to Christmas films!

(en.wikipedia.org)

    Rankin Bass Classics: These movies fall under their own category because EVERYONE watches them at Christmastime.  The four core films are The Little Drummer Boy, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, and Santa Clause is Coming to Town.  I usually don't watch The Little Drummer Boy because I was forced to watch it a lot as a child because I was raised Catholic and I never really liked Frosty, so I usually stick to Rudolph and Santa Clause is Coming to Town.  These classics are a staple in our home and frequent the ABC Family's 25 Days of Christmas.  If you haven't watched these yet or never heard of them, there's something wrong with you.

(basementrejects.com)

    The Year Without a Santa Clause:  Obviously there are more Rankin Bass films than just the four listed above, but it would take me forever to name them all.  There's Rudolph's Shiny New Year, Rudolph and Frosty's Christmas in July, and then this gem: The Year Without a Santa Clause.  This is probably one of my favorite Christmas movies of all time.  The main reason my sister and I love this movie so much is because of Heat Miser and Snow Miser, who control the weather in each hemisphere.  They do not get along and constantly try to outdo each other to impress their mother, Mother Nature.  Their song in this movie is the one that will get stuck in your head FOR DAYS, so tread lightly.  I'm more of a Snow Miser person while my sister is all Heat Miser, so pick your side and enjoy this lovely film!

(geekbomb.net)

    Elf:  Will Ferrell at his best.  Most people either love or hate this movie, but I fall within the former.  There's nothing about this movie that I don't like.  It's hilarious and full of forever quotes.  I may start my Christmas marathon with this one.  I mean come on...

(buzzfeed.com)

How could you not love that?  This is my favorite line in the movie, by the way.  Yes, out of all of them.

(flavorwire.com)

    Home Alone 2: Lost in New York:  This is my favorite of all the Home Alone movies.  The setting is perfect for Christmas, the shenanigans are on point and the cast is great.  Tim Curry is amazing, as always.  Who wouldn't want to be stranded in NYC around Christmastime with a wallet full of credit cards?  I loved the toy store in this one too.  It reminded me of an older FAO Schwartz, back in the day.  It's a really well-done film.  Very underrated!

(etonline.com)

    The Santa Clause:  This is an oldie, but goodie in my book.  Tim Allen is great in this movie!  If you don't know the premise already, when Santa comes to Tim Allen's home, he accidentally falls off the roof, leaving his coat behind with a small card of instructions.  Scott Calvin, (Tim Allen), dons the suit and becomes the new Santa Clause, unbeknownst to him.  He spend almost the entire movie fighting the change and refusing to believe in himself, at the expense of his young son Charlie.  The movie also deals with the concept of divorce in a heartbreaking way, so get your tissue ready when you sit down to watch this one.  Despite the emotions, this one is a great pick!

(telegraph.co.uk)

    The Muppet Christmas Carol:  Last but not least, this classic movie with a Muppet twist.  Out of all the remakes and variations of this Christmas story, this one is by far my favorite and, if I may be so bold, the best.  You have the talented Michael Caine as Mr. Scrooge, Gonzo and Rizzo are narrating, (there's actually a lot of adult humor in this, which I didn't realize until I became an adult), and the old guys from the balcony as Marley and Marley.  It's creepy at times, (because puppets), the songs are amazing, (they will also get stuck in your head), and the cast of Muppets stay true to themselves while also staying in character.  IT'S SO GOOD!  If you haven't experienced this adaptation, please do so immediately.

    Those are all my best Christmas movies!  This post got me super excited to watch them all, so I may have to start after dinner tonight.  Let me know in the comments below if you love some, (or all), of these as well or which Christmas movies your family watches every year, (my husband's family watches A Wish for Wings That Work).  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.

Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Fall TV!

    Well hello everyone!  I hope everyone had a great weekend.  I spent mine working, but in reality, that isn't so bad, considering I've spent the last three months not doing anything at all.  It's nice to have somewhere to go and something to do, however trivial or mundane at times.  I just got home from work, actually, and Tuesdays are typically very slow, so I spend most of my time reading and cleaning up the shop.  Even though I barely did anything, I'm still exhausted.  My chronic fatigue is rearing it's ugly head again, so I'm going to assume there's some sickness coming on.  I can't wait for that to manifest...  I also can't wait to crawl into bed with my book, but that's neither here nor there.

    Today I decided to talk about TV because I haven't in awhile.  In fact, some of my more successful or popular posts were TV re-caps, where I talk about what happened in a given episode and what my premonitions might be for future episodes.  Since fall officially starts this week, (especially with the weather finally cooling down to an acceptable temperature), we can expect our favorite TV programs to grace our televisions once more.  I'm going to list the TV shows I'm most excited to watch this season and shows that I might get into if I have the time.  We'll start with a few shows that I'm excited to see return to my weekly line-up.

(hypable.com)

    Once Upon a Time:  I've mentioned this show countless times here and there's no doubt it's my favorite anticipated series premiere on this list.  If you are unfamiliar with OUAT, fairy tale characters have been taken from their enchanted forests and castles and placed in a small Maine town due to a curse by the Evil Queen.  Obviously you'll have to start from season one to get the gist of it, but there's a lot of hidden mystery in this show.  I will be honest in the fact that I did lose a little momentum for this series last season when they introduced Frozen characters because I don't think they did any justice to the story.  HOWEVER, Emma is now The Dark One, (due to a series of unfortunate and unavoidable events), and her family has to deal with the repercussions of Emma's sacrifice.  There are a few new characters getting introduced this season that I'm excited about, including Merida, the Camelot crew, (I'm definitely calling them that from now on), which includes Merlin and King Arthur, and the return of Mulan!  I'm really excited about this season, so if you're new to this, just binge watch the first four seasons.  It should only take you two weeks, tops, and it's totally worth it.  GO DARK SWANN!  Also, LOOK AT THAT GORGEOUS POSTER!  Season five premieres this Sunday, September 27th at 8pm EST.

(seat42f.com)

    Arrow:  Arrow has had it's ups and downs for me, but I fell in love with this series after season two.  It's so complex for a CW show that I was initially surprised.  Who would have thought that the CW network, the same network responsible for the Vampire Diaries, would put out great programming like Arrow, The Flash, Reign and The 100?  The CW has become a formidable force when it comes to dramatic television and Arrow is no exception.  It is dark, gritty and very much a DC universe reminiscent of Batman in all his glory.  If you haven't started this series yet, I highly suggest you do so.  The first season is a little slow, but by season two you will be hooked.  We left off last season with Oliver Queen running away to his new, quiet life after faking his own death with the League of Assassins.  The Arrow is no more, but the GREEN Arrow will be born from the ashes.  This season we get the formal introduction of Speedy, Oliver's younger sister Thea Queen, and Laurel Lance as the Black Canary, taking over for her dead sister Sarah.  With so much that can happen to this new and complete team, there's so much to speculate.  Stephen Amell is still HAF though, amirite?  Season four promises to be just as great, if not better, than all it's previous seasons, premiering Wednesday, October 7th at 8pm EST.

(ign.com)

    Agents of Shield:  On the other side of the comic book spectrum, we have Marvel's Agents of Shield, who's last season finale led the way right into the beginning of Avengers: Age of Ultron.  I love the overlap of this series with the Marvel cinematic universe.  The show follows a team of individuals who are members of the S.H.I.E.L.D organization, (who we don't really know that much about, other than the fact that they're very much like secret agents and a task force to be reckoned with), as they investigate various happenings related to the MCU.  The first season set the ground work, although it started extremely slow.  It picked up quickly and now this show is an incredible testament for crossover potential.  Last season we were introduced to the Inhumans, Marvel's take on mutants, (because they can't legally say "mutants" because of copyright).  Skye, or Daisy, has discovered that's she's one of them and has to deal with her new role on the team as Quake.  I'm assuming we're going to dive deeper into the Inhumans story line this season with all the unanswered questions we received at the end of last season.  I literally can't wait to see what happens this season!  Season three premieres Tuesday, September 29th on ABC at 9pm EST.

(amazingracewikia.com)

    The Amazing Race:  This show is my guilty pleasure!  I watch this show with my dad and it's always nice to spend time with him watching a show we mutually love.  We get a kick out of all the different countries and places the racers visit on their way back to home base.  We also love watching the inevitable squabbles and annoying teams that make watching both laughable and painful at times.  It's one of the few reality shows that I watch religiously.  The 27th season, (WHOA), premieres this Friday, September 25th at 8pm on CBS.
    Dancing with the Stars:  Another guilty pleasure reality show I watch with my dad.  I loved last season, but this season looks ratchet, so I'm not sure if I'll watch or not.  That being said, I will most likely be drawn to the allure of Tom Bergeron's awesome personality at least.  It already premiered, so I'm behind at this point, but I can catch up on ABC.com.  Go Bindi!

   
    Those were shows I know I'll be watching the next few months.  These next shows are shows I'd like to make time for, if it's worth my while.  Still unsure whether or not I can commit to one or any of these, but we'll give it a try.
    Gotham:  I tried watching Gotham for awhile and I liked it a lot, but I missed a few episodes and never went back.  I enjoyed the dark, gritty world it portrayed, similar to Arrow, but still different.  Two very different cities, two different settings, two different groups of people, one old school Batman, another new school DCU.  This next season promises the beginnings of the Joker, whom we've all been dying to see come to life on this show.  Rumor has it the guy playing the Joker is really talented, so I'm curious to see how he brings the Joker to life.  That would be one of the only reasons I tune in.  Season two has already started on FOX.

(gamespot.com)

    Heroes Reborn:  I never watched the original Heroes, but I've heard nothing but good things about it from my friends who've seen it.  I would be doing myself a disservice if I watched this series without watching the original, but this new series looks so great!  I'd like to feel the nostalgia that comes from seeing an old character you love in a new show.  Zachary Levi seems to have somewhat of a presence on this reboot, so I'm willing to give it a go.  I'm not sure why I wasn't initially drawn to the original Heroes before, but I will have to find it on Netflix in the meantime and figure out why.  Heroes Reborn premiers Thursday, September 24th at 8pm EST on NBC.

    The Muppets:  I've always loved the muppets, so when I heard that they were trying to resurrect The Muppet Show, I almost fell out of my chair.  That being said, this is a lot different than what I was anticipating, although I think it could work for them.  The Office and Parks and Rec feel of this series makes me want to see the muppets in this environment.  I know it will not be what I am used to and I still crave the nostalgia that comes with the sing-song comedy that is the muppets, but I'm willing to give this thing a shot.  The Muppets premieres TONIGHT at 8pm EST on ABC.

    That's all I have for fall TV shows!  Hopefully I can get to all of them without cable at my disposal...  Which ones do you watch?  What are your favorites?  Are there any shows not on my list that you think I would like?  Leave me your recommendations and comments below.  Until next time, I remain your faithful correspondent.